Lake Chelan Community Hospital & Clinics (LCCHC) Board of Commissioners appointed Jordana LaPorte of Chelan to fill the vacancy left by Commissioner Tom Warren at its regular board meeting Tuesday, May 22. She will serve until the November 2019 election.

“I applied for this position because I believe our valley should have the best possible healthcare facility, and I believe I can contribute to that goal,” said LaPorte, who is the President/CEO of LaPorte Financial Alliance, Inc., a full-service accounting firm in Chelan.

“I want our hospital to be successful,” she said. “To me, that means it can provide efficient, quality and compassionate care, that it is sustainable, and that it is not a burden to the taxpayers… I believe I have the education, business experience and desire to facilitate that success.”

“Jordana LaPorte has a skill set that will be invaluable to the Board, “said Mary Signorelli, LCCHC Board Chair. “She will be an excellent addition.”

LaPorte founded LaPorte Financial Alliance, Inc. and purchased a local CPA’s sole proprietorship in 2003, after 17 years in the industry. She completed her BA in Business Administration with an emphasis in accounting at the University of Washington in 1985 and worked for one of the largest local accounting firms in Bellevue, continuing her education at Golden Gate University and receiving a Master’s Degree in Taxation in 1993. Professionally, LaPorte has focused on providing tax and business consulting and compliance to a wide variety of clients in many industries.

She is also a member of Lake Chelan Rotary, the American Institute of CPA’s, the Washington State Society of CPA’s, and Eastern Washington Advisory Board Member for the Washington Policy Center. She served as president of Lake Chelan Rotary in 2015 and 2016, as well as president of the North Central Washington Business Loan Fund. Additional experience includes founding Member and Chairman of the Young CPA’s, a subgroup of the Washington State Society of CPA’s, and Chair of the Membership Committee of the WSCPA. LaPorte also participated in training through Financial Peace University and is a certified counselor. This program encourages the use of budgeting, financial responsibility, investing for the future and discourages the use of debt.

LaPorte looks forward to her time on the LCCHC Board and will begin orientation shortly. “I don’t pretend to know or understand all that this job will entail,” she said, “but I am confident that I have the skills and desire to get up to speed quickly and be a productive board member.”

“I don’t believe everyone will agree all of the time,” she continued, “and even when we do agree, I think it is still important to play the devil’s advocate, thereby looking at different sides of the issue, something I am particularly good at.”

LaPorte moved to the Chelan area in 1999, having married a farmer local to the valley; they have three children. The family farm includes apples and cherries as well as the occasional pig, steer or produce for fair.

Six individuals submitted letters of interest for the vacant LCCHC Board position. After initial review at a special Board meeting May 15, the Board asked two applicants, LaPorte and Guy Evans, to submit additional information, which they reviewed and discussed during an executive session at the May 22 Board meeting.

“We want to sincerely thank all of the applicants,” said Signorelli. “They were all quality candidates, and we appreciate their interest and support of the hospital.”